Political circles are abuzz that BRS leader and Telangana CM’s daughter K Kavitha may be arrested after Enforcement Directorate’s questioning in the Delhi liquor policy ‘scam’. The bigger concern, however, is where will she be lodged?
According to sources, all lock-ups have been occupied after new arrests were made in the excise policy case. However, if ED sources are to be believed, a few prison cells may be vacated by Thursday evening to accommodate new accused from Friday.
K Kavitha, although, skipped the ED summons a day ago, but speculations are rife of troubling mounting on her. The Enforcement Directorate has been quite active in the last few years as raids, arrests and interrogation have seen manifold increase.
ED Headquarters Shifted
The ED headquarters was shifted from Khan Market to Janpath, where four prison cells were constructed in the new building. In these lock-ups, the accused are kept and interrogated throughout the day. Sources said that all these cells are full but are likely to be vacated by next week.
Former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia and Hyderabad-based businessman Arun Ramachandra Pillai — accused in liquor policy ‘scam’ — and senior TMC leader Anubrata Mandal and his chartered accountant Manish Kothari — accused in West Bengal cattle smuggling case — are currently lodged in these lock-ups.
Purpose and Functioning of ED Lock-ups
All the accused are kept in separate lock-ups to avoid any communication between them. Earlier, when the ED headquarters was located in Khan Market, the accused were kept in Tughlaq Road police station at night, following which a medical examination was done the next morning.
After the examination, they were brought back to the ED headquarters, where the questioning would then take place. However, after the shifting to Janpath, the steps were cut down as the accused are lodged in the same agency building.
Manish Sisodia’s ED Remand Extended
Meanwhile, Sisodia’s ED custody was further extended by five days on Friday. The agency had earlier sort seven-day remand of the former Delhi deputy chief minister, claiming that crucial information has emerged out from the interrogation. Sisodia’s lawyer, however, argued that both CBI and ED are asking similar questions to him.
The ED said that Sisodia needs to be confronted with ex-excise commissioner C Aravind, Dinesh Arora, Amit Arora and Rahul Singh. “There is some fresh funding pertaining to parts of investigation revealed by one Alok Srivastava from the excise department. Sisodia needs to be confronted with these people because of new revelations made by Srivastava,” advocate Zoheb Hossain, appearing for ED, said.
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